In this episode, author Jenny Blake joins me for a conversation about her new book, FREE TIME: Lose the Busywork, Love Your Business  (https://itsfreetime.com/book), which helps entrepreneurs engineer the stress out of their work. I ask her to use myself as a case study and apply her principles to helping me reduce stress in my working life.Though FREE TIME doesn’t come out until March, if you pre-order a copy now (at https://itsfreetime.com/book) you’ll get immediate access to a pair of free copies of the audiobook: one for you and one for a friend.Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the topics covered in today's listener calls mini-episode (with timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.OPENING CHAT: Cal is excited about his new email setup. LISTENER CALLS:- Shutdown struggles. [13:58]- The difference between value-based planning and the deep life buckets. [17:47]- Drowning in meeting prep. [28:21]- Fiction book recommendations. [32:34]- My process for writing New Yorker Articles. [40:27]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.DEEP DIVE: Is your productivity system leaking? [6:01]DEEP WORK QUESTIONS:- How do I accomplish big projects in small amounts daily effort? [12:50]- How do I make more money as I become more efficient? [17:28]- What’s the best way to add structure to chaotic non-profit? [21:22]- How do I build an autopilot schedule for unpredictable work? [27:10]DEEP LIFE QUESTIONS:- How do I modify your student advice for a part-time student? [33:32]- How do I filter news? [40:31]- Where should start in planning for the future? [43:22]- Why does the FIRE movement get so much attention? [47:19]- How do I convince myself to execute my plans? [53:41]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the topics covered in today's listener calls mini-episode (with timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.LISTENER CALLS:- Doctors and depth. [6:42]- Career capital in the military. [10:39]- Coping with a hyperactive job. [14:45]- Making a teaching plan for the semester. [27:32]- Managing references. [33:53] Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.OPENING CHAT: The 5 Books I Read in November (Bonus Rant: Why did Jurassic Park need an assessment from a chaos theoretician?) [2:06]DEEP WORK QUESTIONS:- Is it worth becoming good at skills that you only need short term? [21:51]- How do I seem present online when working on side projects? [26:43]- Should I revise my weekly plan if things change? [36:09]- How should I manage reading I want to do? [39:29]DEEP LIFE QUESTIONS:- How can I take a deep approach to networking? [46:21]- How can I focus on deep work with so much suffering around me? [50:59- How do I teach my students to not buy into the hyperactive hive-mind? [57:35]- What’s your (Cal’s) advice for “jack of all trades” people who want to become so good they can’t be ignored? [59:37]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the topics covered in today's listener calls mini-episode (with timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.OPENING CHAT: YouTube vs. Social MediaLISTENER CALLS:- The magic of autopilot scheduling [16:35]- Tips for finding a non-hyperactive good boss [23:18]- Alternatives to email-based workflows [27:24]- Taming Trello [35:07]- Study tactics [38:58] Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.DEEP DIVE: Should you move to the country?  [3:55]DEEP WORK QUESTIONS:- Is it worth time blocking for long projects? [20:11]- What’s your (Cal’s) opinion on bosses stopping by the office to chat?  [22:16]- How can I remember all of your advice? [25:39]- How do I avoid the feeling of just going through the motions? [32:41]- How do I better get started in the morning? [38:31]DEEP LIFE QUESTIONS:- What’s your advice for studying while also working in a warehouse? [44:38]- How can I improve my meditative walks? [50:10]- How can working parents maximize time spent with children? [54:12]- Are you so good you can’t be ignored in computer science?  [58:40]- How do I choose a thesis topic? [1:03:41]  Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the topics covered in today's listener calls mini-episode (with timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.DEEP DIVE: When should tasks live on my calendar? [7:24]LISTENER CALLS:- Online presences for novelists  [14:13]- Not getting stuff done outside of work [26:10]- Managing team workload [32:19]- Finding more family time [39:37]- Leveraging career capital early in one’s career [47:48]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.DEEP DIVE: How do I tame email? [9:51]DEEP WORK QUESTIONS:- How to accomplish deep work in the context of meeting overload? [29:09]- What is difference between the productivity funnel and capture/configure/control? [36:06]- Do you (Cal) have a filing system for emails? [40:18]- What time blocking granularity is best? [42:53]- How do you (Cal) manage projects vs tasks on your board system? [44:52]DEEP LIFE QUESTIONS:- How does one get a sense of satisfaction from goals that continue ad infinitum? [50:33]- How soon after the birth of a child is it realistic to start employing time blocking? [55:29]- How should one combine having young children and pursuing newfound ambitions? [59:24]- How should I think about career capital when taking time off to be a stay-at-home parent? [1:03:19]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.

Below are the topics covered in today's listener calls mini-episode (with timestamps). For instructions on submitting your own questions, go to calnewport.com/podcast.DEEP DIVE: Decoding the Productive Pause [2:43]LISTENER CALLS:- Finding a research interests.  [10:00]- Trading moments of your life for money. [13:23] - Scheduling more deep work. [23:14]- Handling the difficult switch from work to leisure and then back again.  [27:30]            - Creating temporal Eudamonia Machines.  [32:31]      - Leading a new team away from email.  [39:14]Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering.